Google Reader axe sparks user protest petition

The US search firm is ditching Reader on July 1 as part of one of its regular "spring clean" exercises, involving a number of apps and services being discontinued.

Google Reader screenshot

Despite there being a variety of alternatives to Google Reader available, such as Feedly, Reeder, Newsblur and Flipboard, the move has triggered an angry reaction from users.

The term 'Google Reader' has trended for most of Thursday (March 14) on Twitter, and a 'Keep Google Reader' petition launched online has already attracted more than 20,000 signatures.

Text posted on the petition says: "Google Reader powers so many great apps like Flipboard and Reeder. Lets fight to keep Google Reader alive (sic).

"If Google won't keep Google Reader alive, then lets get them to open source the code and we will run it ourselves! Who is with me?"

In comments posted on the petition, one user named Jay Khimani said of Google Reader: "I love it, the interface, usability on all platform - desktop, mobile, tablets. Dont kill this beautiful app as you did it in past with Google Notebook."

A user named Me473 said: "It's the first thing I check in the morning and the last thing I check at night."

Another person added: "I don't want to depend on my handheld device only just to read news. I don't want to use Flipboard, I don't want to use Google Current and Pulse....Keep Google Reader alive!"

Google knew full well that the Google Reader axe would upset some users. It said in a blog post: "We know Reader has a devoted following who will be very sad to see it go. We're sad too.

"There are two simple reasons for this - usage of Google Reader has declined, and as a company we're pouring all of our energy into fewer products. We think that kind of focus will make for a better user experience.

"To ensure a smooth transition, we're providing a three-month sunset period so you have sufficient time to find an alternative feed-reading solution. If you want to retain your Reader data, including subscriptions, you can do so through Google Takeout."

A number of other RSS sites and apps rely on Google Reader for their services, but have come out today to confirm that they are taking measures to continue operating.

Feedly has said that it will clone the Google Reader API, while fellow Google dependent, Reeder, claims it "won't die with Google Reader", reports The Next Web.

Social news aggregator Flipboard says it has got users' RSS feeds "covered", and Newsblur intends to add more servers to cope with the expected demand after Google Reader ends.